Islands of Snow and Ice
by DuskStarDragon
Summary: Princess Twilight and Spike are enjoying a lovely fall day when Fluttershy comes running through Ponyville like a legion of changelings are after her. After they are able to finally stop her from panicking, they find out that there is a strange creature in the woods near her house. More of a summary inside. Plus the story!
1. Flutter Fly!

Welcome to my second _My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic._ I can't believe that I came up with another story. The first is _Cutie Mark Crusaders Conundrum._ I should probably finish up that up first, but sometimes I have to get things down or they'll fade away like snow in spring. Poetic I hope. Anyway, I hope that everyone (pony) will enjoy this. Drop a review or pm is you wish. Just let me know what you think. As for what this story is about…

Princess Twilight and Spike are enjoying a lovely fall day when Fluttershy comes running through Ponyville like a legion of changelings are after her. After they are able to finally stop her from panicking, they find out that there is a strange creature in the woods near her house. Little do they know that investing this strange creature will fling them into a land beyond the borders of Equestria and into a heap of trouble.

**Chapter One:**

**Flutter Fly!**

Swirls of leaves and loose grass twirled through the chilly morning air. The Pegasi had to make it a blustery day to knock down the rest of the leaves in preparation for the coming winter. The Running of the Leaves was a great success this year, but many of the trees decided to hold to their leaves. Mares and stallions across Ponyville were doing their best to get the leaves down, but out of the all the suggestions the Pegasi came up with the best. Though the ponies of Ponyville would have to deal with the turbulent winds for a day or two, they could at least go about their day.

"Come back here!" Daisy went galloping after her run away basket full of autumn flowers.

With a smile, Twilight Sparkle surrounded the blowing basket with her magenta magic, "Here you go," she gently floated it towards Daisy.

"Oh thank you Princess Twilight," Daisy caught her breath as she gave a little bow.

Twilight blushed, "You know that you can just me Twilight."

"That wouldn't be proper," Daisy bowed once more, "You are a Princess after all," she took her basket in her mouth and headed down the street.

Twilight rolled her eyes with a sigh, "I don't know why every pony is insisting on calling me Princess. I really haven't changed since I've become an Alicorn. Have I?" she looked down to Spike.

Spike looked up to her in disbelief, "Really Twilight? You haven't changed? Let me think," he started to sarcastically ponder, "You've found the Elements of Harmony that you used to defeat Nightmare Moon which reunited Princess Celestia with her little sister Princess Luna… You've defeated the embodiment of chaos known as Discord… You've saved your big brother's and Princess' Candace's wedding from a horde of Changelings… You were able to create new magic by helping your friends with their mixed up Cutie Marks, which then turned you into an Alicorn…," he went on.

"Are you done yet?" Twilight looked down to him with a glare.

"No, no. I still have a few more," he smirked, "You and I went into another world to retrieve your Element of Harmony from an evil Sunset Shimmer…"

"She wasn't evil," Twilight corrected him, "she just didn't have the advantage of good friends like you and me."

"Fine," he rolled his eyes, "And last but not least, you took on all the known Alicorn magic that you tried to use to defeat Tirek, but ultimately had to give it up to save me and our friends… even Discord," he huffed, "and find six magic keys that unlocked a crystal chest that the Tree of Harmony gave you and turn you and the others into Rainbowized version of yourselves to defeat Tirek, which released all the magic he stole and saved Equestria from absolute destruction…," he took in a deep breath, "And then the crystal chest gave you a crystal palace and you were named the Princess of Friendship…," he twirled for a moment as he tried to catch his breath.

"Now are you done?" she waited for anything more he had to say.

Spike opened his mouth as if to say something, but was still out of breath and fell over instead.

"Oh Spike," she gently smiled, "Come on," she lifted him onto her back, "We're supposed to meet the girls Sugarcube Corner to discuss the preparations for this year's Nightmare Night. Princess Luna is coming and I want to make sure that everything is perfect for her visit," she trotted with pride as she thought of all the work she had painstakingly done, "She sounded really excited about coming and scaring the little colts and fillies again," she giggled.

"Luna excited? That's scary," Spike was skeptical.

"Oh Spike," Twilight hushed him, "Princess Luna just has a harder time showing her feelings…"

"She has about as many feelings as a rock," Spike whispered under his breath.

His comment didn't escape Twilight's ears. She turned back to him and gave him a harsh glare. He just smiled in embarrassment as his cheeks turned red. Rolling her eyes, she just started back down the way towards Sugarcube Corner.

There were a lot of ponies out getting their outdoor things tied down or taking them inside. They would stop what they were doing to greet and bow to Twilight as she passed. Her cheeks grew redder and redder with each pony's bow. She picked up her pace to escape from the admiring eyes. Quickly ducking down an alley way, she caught her breath. Though she had been a Princess for some time now and she had found what she was supposed to do, she was still never comfortable with every pony treating her differently. Spike always toward her to go with the flow, but it just didn't feel right. She may have been an Alicorn, but she still wanted to be treated like the Unicorn she used to be.

"Let's just go the back way," Twilight falsely smiled at Spike.

He only rolled his eyes as they made their way down the alley. He just wished that Twilight would stop being so embarrassed by all the attention. It was no use though. He knew that eventually she would learn to accept her true role and that he was right all along. Until then, he was going to have to go with it.

"See," Twilight emerged from the safety of the shadows, "We made it here in no time."

"We could have gotten here faster if you flew," Spike pointed out as he got down from his back.

Twilight looked back at her wings, "Right… flew…," she sighed.

She was much better at flying, but like Fluttershy she preferred to stick close to the ground.

"TWILIGHT!" Pinkie Pie yelled from the top of Sugarcube Corner, "I'VE BEEN WAITING FOREVER!"

"I'm ten minutes early," Twilight shook her head with a smile.

"I know!" Pinkie suddenly appeared before her, "But I've waiting for this day ever since we all agreed to meet here to prepare for the Nightmare Night! I'm just so…," she tried to contain herself, but with little success, "EXCITED!"

She exploded into the air with confetti and streamers flowing from her.

"This is your favorite holiday," Twilight couldn't help but giggle.

"Well duh. It's BEST holiday EVER!" she bounced up down, "You get to dress up in funny costumes and go around and get free candy and get the frosting scared out of you," she grinned, "Not to mention all the fun games and great food and did I mention you get FREE CANDY?"

"You did," Spike folded his arms.

"I'm just so EXCITED! I wish it was Nightmare Night already," she disappeared into the store in a flash, "See!" she reappeared dressed like chicken, "I've already got my costume ready," she smiled her silly little way.

"Umm… Pinkie Pie?" Twilight pointed out, "Weren't you a chicken last year?"

"Oh Twilight," Pinkie laughed, "This may look like a chicken costume, but in fact I am going as 'The Chicken Who Crossed the Road'. I was just a plain old chicken last year, but this year I'm the world's oldest joke about poultry. What do you think?"

Twilight was actually a little surprised by the creative response, "That's… a great costume Pinkie… very original."

"I know, right?" she disappeared and reappeared without her costume, "I hope the others get here soon. I'm about to explode if they don't get here."

Twilight and Spire believed her considering she was bouncing up and down uncontrollably.

"Sorry every pony," Applejack's voice called out to them, "I had to help Big Mac harvest apples in the southern fields for the festival. Of course with these here winds, we had to put the baskets on their sides to catch the apples."

"That's okay AJ," Twilight greeted her, "We're still waiting for Rarity, Fluttershy, and Rainbow Da…," something flew by her at supersonic speed.

"No you're not," Rainbow Dash hovered above them.

Twilight was about to say something, but was interrupted by another voice.

"Yoo Hoo! Girls! I'm here," Rarity's voice rang like a bell as she approached.

She was dressed in a cape of emerald and faded into blue at the trim. She struck a pose as she modeled her latest fashion design.

"Don't you love it?" she twirled about, "It's this season's It color and I've already got an order from Canterlot for twenty of them. I've got them all done for once," she admitted, "But I'm hoping that I'll be getting more in."

"It's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen," Spike started to make his usual goo goo eyes at Rarity.

"It's very lovely Rarity," Twilight admired it, "But weren't you supposed to bring some decorations with you."

"Yeah," Applejack gave her a flat look, "Like all those pumpkins I gave you to decorate. Or did you forget?"

"Oh didn't forget them my dear," Rarity turned around, "Come on boys," she called out.

Two strong stallions appeared pulling a cart each. In them where pumpkins that seemed to shine and glisten in the sun. They stopped and wiped their brows of sweat.

"Thanks boys," Rarity fluttered her eyes at them, "I knew two, big, strong fellows like you could pull this light little carts," she rubbed them each under the chin.

Their tongues hung out as she thanked and fluttered her eyes. They could barely speak as they unhitched themselves from the cart. Wobbling from side to side, they headed down the street in a love filled haze.

"I don't know how you do that Rarity, but you have a way with stallions," Applejack walked up to the carts.

"It's all about the look and pouty eyes my dear," she coifed her mane, but soon the wind blew it out of place, "Can we please go inside," she whined, "This wind is destroying my look. Why did you Pegasi have to make the wind so strong?" Rarity stomped her hoof up at Rainbow Dash.

"Don't blame me!" Rainbow Dash huffed, "We had to whip up this wind so all the leaves would come down. If we didn't, every pony would have to be out getting the leaves down by hoof. You wouldn't want to be doing that now, would ya?" she asked.

Rarity thought for a moment, "… no… I suppose not. I might get dirty if I had to do that…," the wind picked up again and blew her mane into her eyes, "But can we please go inside? This wind is dreadful."

"We're still waiting on Fluttershy," Twilight looked around to see if she was coming down the way, "But I suppose we can wait inside…"

"She'll probably be late," Rainbow Dash explained, "Something about helping squirrels finding places to hind their nuts… I don't know," she really hadn't paid attention.

"I'm sure she'll be along then," Rarity headed for the open door of the Sugarcube Corner, "She won't mind if we…," she was almost inside.

"Now hold on there," Applejack stepped onto the trim of Rarity's cape, "What have you done to these pumpkins?"

"You brute!" Rarity was appalled but the dusty hoof print on her brand new cape, "This is a cotton satin blend that took me three weeks to produce! And now you have soiled it with your dirty hoofs," she pulled the cape from under Applejack's hooves and started to brush away the filth.

"And it took me five months to grow these pumpkins," she held up a pumpkin.

"What is that supposed to be?" Rainbow Dash stared.

"It's a Jack O Lantern of course," Rarity was proud of her glittery creation, "I just thought to spruce up the design a little."

"A little?" Applejack snorted, "This is not a Jack O Lantern."

The appeared whole and not cut as a normal Jack O Lantern should. Instead of holes being cut out, there was glitter and gems placed in the outline of a face. They shimmered and shined in the sunlight; almost as if they were lit up by a candle inside.

"They are so much better than a plain old Jack O Lantern," Rarity admired her work, "They will really make this year's Nightmare Night so much more fabulous."

"It's not about being fabulous," Applejack sighed, "It's about being scared…"

"AND FREE CANDY!" Pinkie Pie screamed.

"Right…," she gave her an odd look, "Anyway, Rarity. These pumpkins were supposed to be carved, not… glittered," she wasn't sure what to make of the glittery face, "I knew that I should have done them…"

"Pish posh," Rarity brushed it off, "These as so much better… and shiny."

Back and forth they started to argue about whether or not the pumpkins were proper. Even Rainbow Dash got in on it. Spike tried his best to defend Rarity's choice of decoration, but was being drowned out every pony else. Pinkie Pie just made funny faces at Jack O Lanterns and giggled.

"That is enough!" Twilight stomped her hoof, "Applejack," she looked to her, "Rarity volunteered to do the pumpkins because you have those big orders to fill in three towns over. If she hadn't, you wouldn't have had enough time to do anything. Right?"

Applejack looked to the ground in shame, "… yeah… I barely got those orders filled and delivered…"

"And Rarity," Twilight turned her attention to her, "Didn't you promise that you would do exactly what Applejack asked you to do?"

"I may have said that I would do something like that…," Rarity bit her lip.

"Sorry for stepping on your cape Rarity," Applejack apologized.

"Sorry for not doing as you asked," Rarity smiled as she and Applejack hugged.

"Better," Twilight released a sigh of relief, "Now what can we do about these Jack O Lanterns?"

"More like Glitter O Lanterns," Pinkie giggled.

Twilight looked from the pumpkin to the carts full of them. There were a lot of them and there wasn't a lot of time to get them all ready for the festival. The sun just happen to catch the glitter and gems just right.

It hit her.

"I know," she smiled, "We'll leave them as they are and use some of them as decoration for the stage and the rest we can let ponies carve out the face, but leave the glitter. When they're hollowed out and the candle lit, it will make them really shine."

Every pony agreed that was the best idea.

"Now that that is fixed," Twilight sighed, "We just have to wait for Fluttershy to see if she could get the spiders, bats and other creepy crawlies to be in the haunted house," she shuttered at the thought of all those scary creatures.

"She should be along any minute now…," Rainbow Dash started to look side to side.

A yellow flash blew past her and cause her to twirl in midair. Rainbow Dash tried to steady herself as her eyes and head continued to spin.

"Fluttershy?" Twilight thought she saw a hint of three pink, little butterflies.

"TWILIGHT!" Fluttershy flew back and hid behind Applejack.

"What is ever so wrong my dear?" Rarity tried to soothe her.

"Out… forest… scales!" Fluttershy could only stutter and spit out random words.

"Calm down, calm down," Twilight tried her best, "Just take in a deep breath and release it slowly."

Fluttershy tried, but she couldn't get her breaths under control. She could only take short breaths and very few audible works could be heard. Every pony looked to one another; not quite sure how to calm her down this time around. She seemed really frightened by something.

"I know what to do!" Pinkie Pie was suddenly hit with an idea.

She quickly disappeared into the shop and popped back out with a brown bag in her hoof.

"I don't think lunch is going to help," Rainbow Dash didn't see the point.

"It's not for lunch…," she thought for a moment, "Well… maybe later," Pinkie stuffed the open end of the bag into Fluttershy's mouth.

The bag inflated and deflated with Fluttershy's every breath. At first it was fast and erratic, but with her every breathe the movements became slower and more stable. She finally blew out one last big breathe and fell over onto her back. Every pony soon surrounded her.

"Fluttershy? Are you okay?" Twilight asked gently.

"…," she just stared up at them with unblinking eyes.

"Earth to Fluttershy," Rainbow Dash waved her hoof in front of Fluttershy, "Is she still alive."

"Let me check her pulse," Applejack reached for her.

"MONSTER!" Fluttershy suddenly shot up into the air.

"Whoa there nelly," Rainbow Dash took hold of her, "What monster?"

"There's a monster in the Everfree Forest!" she shouted as loud as she could.

"Oh…," every pony answered in unison.

"There are a lot of creatures in the Everfree Forest Fluttershy," Twilight flew up to her, "You even know what most of them are," she was somewhat, but not really, surprised by her reaction.

"But this was one that I've never seen before," she insisted, "It had scales and hooves and an antler and fur and fangs and this horrible wail that still is echoing in my ears…," she went on without making much sense.

"Fluttershy," Twilight got her attention, "You know that no one creature has all that."

"Except for Discord," Spike pointed out.

Rainbow Dash snorted, "Yeah. It was probably just Discord playing a trick on you. Come on out Discord," she started to call out as she searched around, "I know you're here."

"Oh… it wasn't Discord. We're having a picnic on Tuesday," Fluttershy recalled, "And he would never play such a mean trick on me. We're friends after all."

"Friends…," Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, "more like a fiend," she whispered.

"Fluttershy," Twilight ignored Dash's comment, "What did you see exactly?"

"I can't even recount it," she shuttered, "It's too horrible."

"Then why not show us where you saw this 'too horrible to recount' creature?" Applejack suggested.

"Oh no!" Fluttershy jumped, "I don't think I could go back there… not with it there," she hid her face under her hooves.

"Come on girls," Twilight levitated Fluttershy off the ground, "The sooner we find this 'horrible creature', the sooner we can get back to our preparations for Nightmare Night," she started to head for Fluttershy's cottage.

Fluttershy protested as much as she could, but there were no amount of words or arguments that could change Twilight's mind. It's not that Twilight didn't believe Fluttershy, but she wanted to make sure that it wasn't a real thing. She hoped that it was just another one of Fluttershy's irrational fits of fear. If it was real though… she would have to make sure that it wasn't a threat to Ponyville or its residents.

"I am a Princess after all…," she whispered to herself, "I have to look out for the safety of ponies everywhere…"


	2. Screams in the Woods

What an awesome first chapter. Well… it was awesome for me because someone reviewed and there were a lot of hits. Just so AWESOME! I do enjoy knowing that people are enjoying my stories. It makes me do a happy dance. Seriously… well, it's more like a wiggle since I'm in public sometimes when I get the reviews. Anyway, I'll do my shout out and let you get to the story. Hugs go out to ZeldatheWarriorPrincess. Though, yours was more of an observation. Still… it was a comment and I did my happy public wiggle. I don't think anyone saw me.

Enjoy the next chapter!

* * *

**Chapter Two:**

**Screams in the Woods**

There they stood at the edge of the Everfree Forest. Well… Rainbow hovered and Fluttershy couldn't stop running away every moment she could. Twilight finally resorted to levitating her in one spot to keep her still. It was strangely quiet at Fluttershy's cottage. Usually there would birds singing and all sorts of animals playing about. Not today though.

"Where is everyone?" Applejack noticed that there was a soul to found.

"They must have run off when the monster came out of the woods," Fluttershy grew concerned, "Little ones," she started to call out, "where are you?"

Little pink and black noses and bright yellow beaks started to appear one by one and come from their hiding places.

Fluttershy breathed a sigh of relief, "I'm happy to see that you all are okay."

All the little woodland creatures came up to her and chattered away in their own little voices. They seemed to indicate that they were okay and every one of them was safe.

"Did they see the UEFC too?" Twilight looked down to them.

"UEFC?" every pony looked to one another in confusion.

"Unknown Everfree Forest Creature," she explained.

"No one saw it," Fluttershy translated the animals' chirps and growls, "They only hid when they saw me running out of the woods," she shyly explained as she blushed.

"Figures…," Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes.

"Hush now," Applejack looked up to her, "Now, where did you exactly see this… UEFC?" she turned her attention back to Fluttershy.

"And what did it look like?" Twilight asked.

"Yeah! Yeah!" Pinkie Pie jumped up and down excitedly, "Was it tall and thin like a snake, but more like the body of a deer?" she loomed over Fluttershy menacingly.

"Yes! Yes!" Fluttershy squealed.

"Did it have four legs with the hooves like a goat on its back legs and the hooves of a tapir in the front?" Pinkie grew more sinister.

"Yes! Yes!" Fluttershy was in tears.

"Did it have a curved antler in the middle of its forehead with four prongs and have a head of a pony?" Pinkie Pie just wouldn't stop.

"Yes! Yes!" Fluttershy just wished she would stop.

"And did it," Pinkie gave an evil an glare, "have jade scales on its belly, forehead and legs and have a long sweeping tail like a lizard and have moss colored fur with a golden mane?!"

"Ohh…!" Fluttershy fainted.

"Oh dear," Rarity quickly started to fan her.

"Pinkie Pie!" Twilight growled, "Why did you do that? You know that Fluttershy frightens easily."

"And how did you come up with such a description?" Rarity was baffled by her oddly specific depiction.

"I didn't," she smiled, "I see the UEFC right there," she pointed to a row of trees.

Every pony looked to where she pointed. Coming between the trees appeared a creature that was like no other. It was exactly as Pinkie described it. It was long like a snake, but had the body of a deer and a four pronged antler coming from its forehead. Its green body shimmered in the late autumn sun. Its golden mane ran along its back and down to its long tail. The scales appeared like they were made out of individual jade. It popped its head up on its long neck and noticed them standing there. Its deep purple eyes went wide as it look at them. With a leap and a bounce, it disappeared from sight.

"AFTER IT!" Rainbow Dash yelled as she hurried after the unknown beast.

"Wait!" Twilight didn't want to rush off without knowing what they were going after.

It was too late though. Every pony, save for Fluttershy, tore after the creature as fast as they could. Twilight had no choice but to follow. She galloped as fast as she could to catch up, but soon had to stop. She caught her breath as she looked for any signs of where every pony had gone off too. She could hear all of her friends yelling the location of the UEFC, but couldn't seem to come close to it.

Rustle… rustle… snap…

She turned her head to where she heard the snapping twigs and crunching leaves. Nothing was there. She breathed a sigh of relief. Twilight wasn't quite sure if she wanted to meet the creature by herself.

Crunch… crackle… snap…

The noises came once more. She lit up her horn just in case something came jumping out at her. Backing up slowly, she figured it was best to head back to Fluttershy's cottage and regroup with the others. She suddenly bumped into something which caused her to whirl around. Her eyes met with royal purple ones; very frightened purple eyes. Stumbling back, Twilight released a yelp in surprise. The creature reared back and released its own unique cry.

Its body suddenly broke into thousands of petals of all varieties of flowers. They blew through the trees by an unseen wind and disappeared from sight. Twilight was somewhat relieved that the creature left without causing any harm. She didn't feel afraid of it… she was just surprised. Standing back up, she went running after the blowing petals. They weaved back and forth gracefully between the trunks and branches without missing a beat. Twilight on the other hand was having difficulty keeping with them. She almost caught up with, but something suddenly went whizzing by her.

"Whoa!" Rainbow Dash screeched to a halt.

"You find it Dash!?" Applejack galloped out of the trees.

"No," she huffed, "But I found miss slowpoke here," she indicated down to Twilight.

"Yeah Twilight," Pinkie Pie crossed her arms, "Why didn't you rush off like the rest of us into the deep scary Everfree Forest where there are all sort of monsters and creatures that could gobble up little mares like us? Don't you want to find the UEFC?"

"Why did we come running out here?" Rarity didn't like the way Pinkie put their situation.

Twilight rolled her eyes, "I was trying to stop us from running out here and not knowing what we were going up against."

"Doesn't matter what we're up against," Rainbow Dash air boxed, "I'll kick its butt from here to Manehatten."

"Hold on there, Dashy," Applejack could tell that Twilight was annoyed with her response.

Rarity agreed, "We don't even know what that beastie is. But I must say," she sighed contently, "Its scales are the most lovely shade of green."

"Oh I know!" Pinkie jumped up and down in excitedly, "It reminds me of a dandelion right before it turns into a puffball and then I blow on it and make a wish just like when I blow out the candles on a birthday cake…"

"Focus Pinkie," Twilight got her attention, "We need to stick together. Rarity's right. We don't know what it is we're chasing after and I think that it's more scared of us than we are of it," she remembered the fear she saw in its eyes right before it disappeared.

Rainbow Dash looked down to her in shock, "That think afraid of us!? Its toying with us before it pounces on us."

Every pony flinched at the thought of a creature like that coming down on them.

"If you put it that way…," Applejack was starting to lean towards Rainbow's view.

Rarity shuttered, "Oh… the thought of that thing jumping on me with those obviously filthy claws."

"Ooo," Pinkie didn't seemed phased by the conversation, "Something that makes the grass turn green and flowers bloom where it steps is a truly evil beastie," she smiled sinisterly.

"What you talkin' bout Pinkie Pie?" Rainbow Dash didn't believe her.

Pinkie took in a deep breath, "When I was looking in the forest for the UEFC, I was bouncing about like I usually do. I tried go where ever every pony shouted out, but soon I got really, really, really dizzy," she pretended to faint, "So I decided to stand as still as I could, but I had a really, really, really hard time doing that," she bounced up and down, "That's when I heard Twilight's scream…"

"I didn't scream," Twilight defended herself, "It caught me by surprise."

"Sure," Rainbow Dash smirked.

"Now that I think about it," Pinkie thought, "It was more like a yelp of surprise."

"Ha!" Twilight looked up to Dash.

"Whatever," Rainbow scoffed.

Applejack shook her head, "You were saying Pinkie Pie."

"Right," she tried to remember where she left off, "I was waiting and I heard a yelp of surprise… two actually," she added, "Instead of running towards the screams I hid behind a bush," she jumped behind one and peered through the leaves, "I thought I could maybe catch the UEFC off guard. Suddenly I saw the most beautiful whirling bunch of petals. I was going to go out and join them for a dance, but then I notice that they were taking shape and you know what they did?" she asked them.

"WHAT!?" every pony was growing impatient.

"They came together and became the UEFC. It looked around really quickly to make sure no pony was there… it didn't see me because of my awesome hide and seek skills," she was rather proud of that, "It hung its head low like it was really, really, Really sad," she frowned, "As it headed towards the river, grass and flowers grew where it walked."

Twilight looked towards where the river ran, "It headed towards the river?"

"Yup," Pinkie nodded her head.

"Then what are we waiting for?" Rainbow Dash started to fly off.

"Wait!" Twilight summoned a magic bubble around her.

"Hey!" she tried to escape.

Applejack stepped up, "Twilight's right. We have to approach this thing slowly. We don't know what it can do."

Every pony nodded their head in agreement.

"Thanks Applejack," Twilight smiled as she released Rainbow Dash.

"Fine," Rainbow Dash landed on the ground, "But let's hurry it up," she head towards the river.

They all hurried after her, but made sure that they didn't make too much noise as they went. The sound of the river started to fill their ears as they drew closer. Twilight motioned for every pony to slow their pace and keep their eyes open for the UEFC. They carefully started to search the shoreline for any signs of the creature. They found the patches of grass and flowers just as Pinkie had described them.

"If we follow these patches, we should find the creature," Twilight concluded.

"Hope it doesn't get to far ahead…," Applejack started to say.

"EEEKKKKK!" a shriek filled the air.

"That sounded like Fluttershy!" Rarity grew worried.

"Come on girls," Twilight ran towards the screams.

They as fast as they could; following the river. The screams died down and soon there was silence. This worried Twilight and she picked up her pace. Just ahead there was a clearing by the river. In the middle of the clearing stood a tall batch of what looked like to be very large reeds. They formed a circle and Fluttershy was standing on the outside knocking on it.

"Fluttershy! Fluttershy! Are you okay?" Twilight came up to her.

"Oh I'm fine," she whispered, "But I think I scared the UEFC. I came out here because I felt bad that I wasn't with you all. I was following the river when I ran into the creature. It was so frightened by me that it made this bamboo wall. I then realized that it was more afraid of me than I was of it and felt bad about scaring it," she turned her attention back to the grass barrier, "Excuse me?" she knocked once more, "I'm ever so sorry that I scared you. Won't you please come out?" she asked sweetly.

They weren't quite sure what to think about Fluttershy's story. Twilight was more curious about what lie behind the tall grass. She could hear some inaudible mumbling coming from inside, but couldn't tell what was being said.

"Oh dear," Fluttershy sighed, "I hope that I didn't scare it too badly."

Twilight stepped up, "Um… hi…," she wasn't sure what to say, "I'm sorry that I scared you before… you just catch me off guard… I didn't mean to scream," she apologized, "We just want to know what you are and why you're out here. Please come out?"

The bamboo started to rustle like something was about to pop out. Slowly a head emerged from between the stalks. Its golden mane covered most of its face, save for its purple eyes that peeked through the strands. There was still fear in those eyes, but there was also a hint of curiosity. Gingerly, it stepped out until its entire body was in view. Underneath its feet, little daisies and buttercups grew.

"Would you look at that?" Applejack marveled at the blooming flowers.

Applejack's comment spooked the creature and it dived back into the bamboo.

"Poor thing is so frightened," Rarity felt sorry for it.

"It's okay," Twilight stuck her head through the bamboo, "We won't hurt you. I promise."

The creature shivered inside its grassy fortress.

"It's okay," Twilight assured her, "I am Twilight Sparkle…"

"Princess Twilight Sparkle," Rarity corrected her.

Twilight only rolled her eyes, "Yes… I am Princess Twilight Sparkle."

The creature's eyes when wide, "You are a Princess? A true Princess?"

"Umm… yeah…," she answered somewhat confused.

"Please," the creature bowed lowly to her, "I am Maylin of the Spring Island Qilins. I seek help to end the everlasting winter. Please," she looked up her with sad eyes, "Please help my people Princess."

"Huh!?" Twilight was surprised by the creature's response.


	3. Petals in the Woods

I am so grateful that this story is getting so many wonderful reviews. It makes me happy to know that others are finding joy in my words. Of course, this is only the beginning and there is so much more to be explored. I hope you stick with me for the journey. As for those that are already here, my thanks goes out to spookywonky, Drago pirate, ZeldatheWarriorPrincess and HumansAreNotYetGone. Thank you all for your encouraging words.

**Chapter Three**

**Petals in the Wood**

* * *

"What is this one!?" Maylin ran up to a patch of flowers.

"There are Sweet Williams, daisies, lilies and the purple ones are violets," Fluttershy pointed out each flower.

"OH!" she quickly went to an area of moss, "What is this Miss Fluttershy? It looks like my coat," she held it up to her body.

Fluttershy gently smiled, "It's called moss. It's nature's blanket. See how it climbs up the trees and covers the ground…," she started to show and explain to Maylin.

"It's like she's never seen a forest before," Rainbow Dash huffed.

"Shh!" Twilight hushed her, "She might hear you and I don't want to offend her," she looked to see if Maylin had taken notice of their conversation.

Luckily, she was so engrossed by the flora and Fluttershy's words.

"Jeez," Rainbow rolled her eyes, "I wouldn't want to offend the… the…," she couldn't remember what Maylin called herself.

"She's a Qilin," Applejack snorted, "And why you being so… stand offish with her? She ain't done nothing to you."

"I'm not being stand offish," she protested, "I just don't… she… she's just… she's just…" she couldn't spit it out.

"She's what?" Rarity cocked her head, "She's nothing but sweet and gentle and has the most beautiful green scales I've ever seen. They remind so much of Jade," she dreamily sighed.

"Yeah," Rainbow snorted, "she's also a scary cat."

Twilight gave a frustrated sigh, "She's not from here and then she has several ponies chasing after her. Wouldn't you be a little frightened?"

"Pfff. I would have just knocked out any one that would come after me," she smirked as she flexed her arms.

"Not every pony is like you Dash," Applejack pointed out, "Especially Maylin."

"No pony is like Maylin," Rainbow continued to smirk, "She's not even a pony. She talks about spirits in the trees and earth and how full of life they are and how many stories they have to tell," she folded her arms with a snort, "If there are spirits in the trees then how come I can't see them? Huh?"

"You cannot see or hear the spirits that are here?" Maylin over heard her.

"No," Rainbow Dash answered in a snotty tone.

"That is very sad," she commented.

Rainbow Dash flew up to her, "And what is that supposed to mean?" she got right up in her face.

Maylin stood there for a moment frozen in place. With a single shiver, she body collapsed into a pile of petals.

"I think Rainbow Dash broke her," Pinkie Pie wanted to poke the petals, but Twilight started her.

"RAINBOW!" Twilight yelled at Rainbow, "Look at what you did! You scared her," she ran up to the pile of petals, "Are you okay Maylin?"

The pile of petals only shuttered at Twilight's words.

"It's okay," Fluttershy gently spoke to the petals, "Rainbow didn't mean to be so…," she tried to find the right word, "Scary…"

"I wasn't being scary!" Rainbow yelled.

Fluttershy's eyes narrowed and her lips curled into a grimace. She gave Rainbow Dash such a hard glare. Every pony knew that 'The Stare Master' was in charge now. Rainbow instantly landed on the ground with a whimper. She couldn't help but be ensnared by Fluttershy's stare. No pony or creature could escape 'The Stare'.

"I'm sorry Maylin," Rainbow apologized quickly as she continued to stare into Fluttershy's eyes, "I didn't mean to yell at you."

The pile of petals still remained. And Fluttershy's stare became harder.

"I am really, really, really sorry," Rainbow Dash was finally able to tear her eyes away from 'The Stare', "I just… I don't… you say…," she fumbled through her words, but finally release a sigh, "Some of the things you say are strange and I just get frustrated cause I don't understand. So I am sorry and I will try to be more…," she couldn't think of the right word.

"Patient?" Twilight helped her out.

"Yeah. Right," she blushed, "I'll try to be more patient. We cool?" she put her hoof out, "Right?"

The petals started to swirl and take form until a Qilin stood before them once again. She looked to Rainbow's extended hoof, but didn't quite understand what she wanted.

"Here," Rainbow Dash lifted Maylin's front hoof to hers, "It's called a hoof bump. It means we're cool," she clapped her against Maylin's.

Maylin looked to her for a moment, then down to their hooves, "oh…," she finally said, "What does it mean when you say 'We're cool'? Does that mean that you are cold and you wish for me to be as well?"

Every pony started to laugh, though Maylin was more confused than ever.

"It means," Rarity managed to stop giggling for a moment, "That you and Rainbow Dash are friends."

"Oh," Maylin understood, "We Qilins show our friendship in another way."

"How's that?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Like this," she gently placed her forehead to Rainbow's.

Both of their manes started to gently play about in an unseen wind. The grass around their hooves swirled about like they were dancing. It felt like an aura surrounded them, but nothing could be seen. The aura soon faded and the whirling of grass and manes ceased. Maylin stepped away from Rainbow, who seemed to be in shock. Her eyes were wide and her mouth hung open.

"Rainbow?" Twilight wasn't sure what just happened, "Are you okay?"

She didn't answer.

"I think Maylin broke her," Pinkie Pie poked Rainbow in the hind quarters.

Maylin cocked her head, "This has never happen before…"

"That…," Rainbow Dash suddenly came back to life, "was… AWESOME!" she suddenly flew up into the air and did a few barrel rolls, "What was that!?" she came down to Maylin.

"Ahh…," Maylin froze as she body broke into petals.

"Opps," Pinkie Pie looked down at the petals, "Rainbow Dash broke her again."

It took a little coaxing, but Maylin was soon whole again.

"Well girls," Applejack looked around, "We should be heading back. The Everfree Forest is not a place for ponies…," she looked to Maylin, "or Qilin to be hanging around."

"Agreed," Rarity shivered, "This place is do dreadful," she looked at her surroundings, "and dirty…"

"We should head back to the castle and let Spike know that we found out," Twilight started to head for Fluttershy's cottage.

"One thing Twilight," Applejack stopped her, "I don't think that we're gonna be able to walk through Ponyville without some pony reacting to Maylin. She don't exactly fit in."

It was true. They had even a hard time containing themselves when they first saw Maylin. Every pony in Ponyville would probably run off scared if they saw a 'strange' creature walking through the streets. Maylin had already seemed to be through enough that day. An entire village of ponies screaming might cause her to panic. It was best to keep her presence a secret until it was safe.

"Oh!" Rarity squealed, "I could make an oh so lovely disguise!"

"I don't think we have time for that," Rainbow pointed out.

Rarity flipped her mane as she snorted, "There is always time for good fashion… I mean a disguise."

"Umm…," Fluttershy tried to get every ponies' attention.

But no pony paid attention to her. They just started to argue back and forth on what was the best way to get Maylin back to the castle without being seen. Twilight thought she could teleport them back, but she wasn't sure if she could get all the way back to the castle in one shot. Applejack wanted to smuggle her in a cart full of apples. Rainbow thought to fly her there. Rarity still wanted to run back to her boutique and make a disguise. Pinkie only wanted a piece of cake. But no pony could agree.

"Umm…," Fluttershy tried once more.

"What is it Miss Fluttershy?" Maylin asked.

Every pony looked around to her.

"Umm… I was just… I thought that… maybe…," she started to slink away.

Rainbow Dash sighed, "What is it already?"

"I was just thinking that Twilight could use the same spell that she use to turn us into Breezies and turn Maylin into a pony," she quickly expelled her thoughts.

Twilight's eyes went wide, "That… is … Brilliant Fluttershy!" she wondered why she had thought of that, "We can walk Maylin right through town in plain sight and no pony will freak out!"

"That's a great idea," every pony agreed.

"What do you say Maylin?" Twilight turned to her, "Can I preform a spell on you? Huh?"

She was speaking to a pile of petals.

"Let's try to keep the excitement down a little," Twilight looked the others, "For Maylin's sake."

Every pony nodded their head in agreement.


End file.
